By Kelly Morgan,Staff Writer

LEWISTON – There may have been as many die-hard Phish Phans from away as Bates College students at a Trey Anastasio concert Saturday.

They came from Bangor, Boston and the hills of Vermont, with or without tickets, to see the former Phish frontman take the stage at the Gray Cage.

At 5 p.m., an hour-and-a-half before the gym doors opened, only about 11 people had gathered for the show. Graham Duval, 19, of Minot, was first in line.

It was 40 degrees, but Duval, who was joined by his friend Trista Curran, 21, of Auburn, wasn’t about to budge.

“Dude, we like woke up at 10, planned on getting here around like 12, but that didn’t work,” he said. They made it by 2 p.m., though, and waited patiently, passing around a suspicious-looking bottle of red Gatorade and chatting with the other early arrivals.

Nearby stood Josh Howard, 28, and Harmony Cleary, 22, of Brockton, Mass. They’d planned on sleeping in their car that night, but lucked out by arriving early enough to meet Duval and Curran. They’d been invited to crash in Auburn.

“People from Maine are a little more friendly than people from Massachusetts,” said a delighted Cleary, smiling brightly.

Howard nodded in agreement. The couple had brought 10 blankets in hopes of staying warm in their vehicle.

Niel Ryan, 25, of Huntington, Vt., had driven four hours, passing through the White Mountains to reach Lewiston in time for the show. He didn’t have a ticket, but had no doubt he’d find one.

“I love Trey, I’ll see him any chance I get,” he said.

Ryan decided to make the trek across New England after learning two former members of Phish had taken the stage with Anastasio at a show in Utica on Friday.

That’s just the news C.J. Manza, 30, who said he was from Down East and the White Mountains, was dying to hear. He’s been waiting for Phish to reunite since the group disbanded in 2004.

“That’s always the hope,” he said, explaining his presence at the Anastasio show.

There were no reunion antics in the early part of the show, but Anastasio took the stage before a full house at 8:45 p.m. Nearly 2,000 heads bobbed in unison as he played his way through tunes off his new solo album, “Shine,” including “Shine” and “Tuesday.”

The album has received lackluster reviews, and the new songs are more pop than playful, but Anastasio pleased many fans by embarking on long jams with his band between the more standard fare.

As the night got under way, the air thickened with the smell and haze of marijuana, and occasional puffs of smoke shot into the air while the stage lights flashed over the crowd.

A woman with dreadlocks all the way down her back danced with her arms swinging wide, while a man on the sidelines juggled balls that glowed and flickered with electric light, and two young girls ran around sticking ladybug stickers on people.